Campaigners are rallying against plans to turn a Grade II listed pub into a £32,000-a-year private school’s staffroom.
The Fountain Pub – one of only two remaining free houses in Ely, Cambridgeshire – has been pulling pints since it was built as a drinking house in 1830.
But it now faces the threat of closure after a local property consultancy company submitted a planning application on behalf of King’s Ely school to make the building a common room for its teachers.
The private school argues that The Fountain – said to be situated in ‘one of the most appealing’ parts of Ely – is ‘no longer viable’, operates on a ‘very limited basis’ with ‘substantially reduced hours’ and has no staff employed other than the landlord.
Local residents have come together against the proposals which could see yet another British pub fall victim to rising food, energy and labour expenses, critics say.
Joe Moor, 41, who launched a campaign to save the venue, described the plans as ‘nothing short of colonisation’ as he called on East Cambridgeshire district council to reject the application.
Another local argued that the transformation of the pub would be an ‘act of vandalism’ and a major blow to Ely, which is home to about 20,000 people.
Mr Moor said: ‘We feel the pub could be made viable, while permission for change of use will mean it is permanently lost as a pub.
‘Someone should be allowed to have a go at making it succeed for the sake of its history and the sake of the community.’
The Fountain has been owned by John Borland, a local property developer, since 1996.
He is now ready to sell up, according to a planning application submitted by Bidwell’s.
He previously tried to transform the pub’s downstairs bar into a flat in 2021, but had his application refused as it would have caused ‘the loss of a community facility’.
King’s School says it is in need of a staffroom because teachers ‘do not have time to walk’ to and from the current facility, situated about a three-minute walk from the main teaching block.
Of the pub’s current state, the school’s statement added: ‘Extended hours of operation would not generate trade where none exists’.
So far 19 residents have submitted calls to the council in their bid to save the pub, putting its decline down to ‘poor management’.
‘A pub being underused or poorly run is not the same thing as a pub being incapable of succeeding’, one said.
The pub frequently closes early and is run ‘erratically’, one resident wrote, while pointing out that the school’s classroom could see the building used sparsely out of term time.
A campaigner argued: ‘A pub being underused or poorly run is not the same thing as a pub being incapable of succeeding.’
Another wrote that the pub, situated on a green with an outdoor license, ‘is in one of the most appealing parts of Ely and has exactly the kind of setting, visibility and historic charm that many pubs would envy’.
Mr Moor has written to Ely council asking for the premises to be considered an asset of community value. The planning application, however, opposes that idea.
‘The proposal would not result in the loss of a community facility,’ the statement reads.
‘Rather, it would facilitate the continued use of the building in support of an established community institution, consistent with the objectives.’
A host of pubs have closed in recent years amid rising business rates.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in January a £300million package to support establishments after a backlash to her Budget announcement included Labour MPs being banned from pubs across the country.
Earlier this month, pubs were handed a 15 per cent discount on business rates as part of the support package.
Yet industry groups such as UKHospitality and business owners have warned that more cafes, restaurants and hotels would be left with no choice but to shut up shop if similar measures are not drawn up for other parts of the sector.
UKHospitality chief executive Allen Simpson told the Daily Mail in January: ‘The cost challenges facing hospitality businesses continue to grow and four businesses closing a day in the last quarter of 2025 is the unfortunate reality of a sector shouldering the highest tax burden in the economy.’
The Daily Mail has approached both King’s Ely School and The Fountain for comment.
